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SEMI Releases White Paper on PM Automation as a Key Enabler of Autonomous Fabs

By Natalie Shim, SEMI Korea

SEMI has released a new white paper outlining a standardization strategy for preventive maintenance (PM) automation to support the realization of Autonomous Fabs. The report provides a structured analysis of PM within the broader manufacturing landscape and presents actionable pathways for advancing standardization.

Preventive maintenance—routine inspection, replacement, and calibration to prevent equipment failure—remains essential to maintaining yield and operational stability in semiconductor manufacturing. However, despite rapid progress in AI-driven process optimization and data-centric operations, PM activities continue to rely heavily on manual intervention, posing a key constraint to achieving fully autonomous fabs.

Strong Industry Alignment, but a Gap to Deployment

The white paper highlights broad industry consensus on the importance of standardization for Autonomous Fab implementation. At the same time, it identifies an average gap of more than eight years between recognition and actual deployment in manufacturing environments.

This gap is attributed not to technological limitations, but to structural challenges, including:

  • Equipment designs not optimized for robotic interaction
  • Inconsistent data dictionary structures across manufacturers
  • Logistics and packaging systems not designed for automation
  • Lack of event-driven integration between PM and predictive maintenance (PdM)

These findings underscore the need for globally aligned interoperability standards across equipment, data, and logistics systems.

Manual PM Emerging as a Productivity and ESG Risk

In advanced process environments, manual PM introduces risks such as contamination, process variability, and exposure to hazardous materials. These risks impact not only productivity and yield, but also safety and ESG performance.

The report also notes that more than 97% of component logistics are not designed for robotic handling, leaving the “last mile” of maintenance operations dependent on manual processes. This remains a critical bottleneck in the transition to Autonomous Fabs.

Eight Priority Areas for Standardization

To address these challenges, SEMI outlines eight key areas for standardization to enable PM automation:

  • Robot-ready equipment design
  • Universal robot interfaces
  • Integrated data dictionaries and communication protocols
  • Standardized logistics and packaging specifications
  • Modular equipment design
  • Cleanliness and safety standards
  • Event-driven PM–PdM integration frameworks
  • Digital twin-based validation frameworks

Together, these areas position PM automation not simply as an efficiency initiative, but as a foundational step toward Autonomous Fab realization.

Advancing Toward Global Standardization

Developed in collaboration with industry stakeholders and research institutions in Korea, the white paper reflects both field-driven insights and technical expertise. SEMI plans to build on these findings by expanding technical committee and working group activities and advancing global standardization efforts in PM automation.

SEMI emphasizes that the remaining challenge for Autonomous Fabs is not technology, but interoperability. Fully autonomous manufacturing will require equipment, robots, data, and logistics systems to operate within a shared framework and common language.

SEMI will continue to expand collaboration with industry stakeholders and advance related standardization activities. For more information or to explore participation in future working group activities, please contact SEMI at [email protected].

The Advancing Autonomous Fabs White Paper is available for download on the SEMI website: https://www.semi.org/en/industry-groups/smart-manufacturing

Get Involved

SEMI Standards development activities take place throughout the year in all major manufacturing regions. To get involved, join the SEMI International Standards Program at: www.semi.org/standardsmembership.

For more information, please visit our main Web site and current events page. If you have any questions regarding SEMI Standards activities, please contact your local SEMI Standards staff.

 

Standards Watch
SEMI
www.semi.org
April 16, 2026